Digital payments, blockchain, artificial intelligence and robotics will revolutionise the way banks function and engage with customers

Narayanasamy called on Puducherry Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi in this regard

Event through Feb 13-18 at BKC in Mumbai brought in 2,594 MoUs entailing Rs 7.94 lakh cr investments

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This is for the first time since MGR's death in 1987 that a party will return to power for a second straight term in Tamil Nadu

She is likely to be sworn in as chief minister for a second consecutive term on May 23

AIADMK Supremo hands over a list of 29 legislators who will be appointed as the ministers

Procter & Gamble Hygiene & Health Care rose 0.27% to Rs 10190.15 after net profit rose 1.1% to Rs 91.10 crore on 6.2% decline in net sales to Rs 656.05 crore in Q3 March 2020 over Q3 March 2019.

FMCG major Hindustan Unilever (HUL) jumped 4.81% to end at Rs 2088.35 after a foreign brokerage reportedly maintained an 'outperform' rating on the stock with a target of Rs 2,400 per share.

Australia's Daniel Ricciardo anticipates "chaos", "rust" and "adrenaline" should the 2020 Formula One season start at last. The global spread of the coronavirus has already led to 10 races, of what was to have been a record 22-event championship, being either cancelled or postponed. Officials at the FIA, motorsport's world governing body, are hoping to launch the season behind closed doors in Austria on July 5. "(It will be) some form of chaos, hopefully in a controlled manner," the Renault driver told BBC Radio Five Live. "I am not really referencing cars everywhere. But there is going to be so much rust, a combination of emotion, excitement, eagerness." Ricciardo, waiting out the crisis on his farm near Perth, Western Australia, believes a dramatic season-opener is in prospect at the Red Bull Ring. "Everyone is going to be ready to go," he said. "You are going to get some guys who perform on that level of adrenaline and others who might not. "So you're going to get some bold ...

The Haryana government said on Friday a three-member SIT, which will be headed by a senior IAS officer, has been constituted to investigate the huge stock of liquor going missing from two godowns in Sonipat, and the alleged sale of illicit liquor in the state. With several bootlegging incidents being reported during the lockdown when liquor vends were closed, the SIT will also probe sale of illicit liquor in the state during the period, Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said. Liquor vends in Haryana were closed from March 27 after the lockdown was announced, but have now reopened from May 6 after the state government decided to open the vends. He said a senior IAS officer -- either Ashok Khemka, Sanjeev Kaushal or T C Gupta -- will head the SIT while IPS officer Subhash Yadav and Additional Excise Commissioner Vijay Singh will also be its members and jointly investigate the matter. The scope of the SIT, which was earlier to probe the case of seized liquor going missing from the godowns ..

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday remembered reformer Gopal Krishna Gokhale on his 154th birth anniversary, recalling his contribution towards education and social empowerment. "Remembering Gopal Krishna Gokhale on his birth anniversary. A remarkable personality blessed with immense wisdom, he made outstanding contributions towards education and social empowerment," Modi wrote on Twitter. Gokhale, the prime minister said, also provided exemplary leadership to India's freedom movement. Gokhale was born on this day in then Bombay Presidency.

Puducherry Health Minister Malladi Krishna Rao on Saturday said the Centre has lauded the performance of the territorial administration in keeping the spread of COVID-19 at bay as there had been only two to three active cases of the infection. Talking to reporters here, Rao said the Joint Secretaries of the Union Health Ministry had contacted him seeking to clarify as to whether Puducherry was "really having such a small number of active cases." The officials also wanted to know whether the figures furnished were really "correct." They raised eyebrows largely because of the high incidence of the pandemic in the neighbouring districts of Villupuram and Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu, he said. Rao said he had told them that the team work done by departments of Health, Police, Revenue and Disaster Management, Public Health and other line departments here has been chiefly responsible for the good achievement of Union Territory. He said he had apprised the officials of the meticulous

A special committee has been formed by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation for containing the spread of COVID-19 in different parts of the city, a member of the panel said. Chairperson, caretaker board of administrators of the civic body and Municipal Affairs minister Firhad Hakim, former deputy mayor Atin Ghosh, four community medicine experts and KMC health officials are members of the newly formed committee. The panel was formed after Hakim assumed charge as chairperson of the caretaker board of administrators (BOA) of the KMC on Friday. The state government appointed the board since elections could not be held to the KMC owing to the coronavirus outbreak. The Calcutta High Court on Thursday allowed the BOA to act as the KMC's caretaker board for a month. Ghosh told PTI on Saturday, "We will sit every afternoon to take stock of the situation and decide accordingly. "Apart from containment zones, we will review the situation in other areas of the city as well. There ...

The Tamil Nadu government on Saturday set up a high-level committee headed by former Reserve Bank of India governor C Rangarajan to examine fiscal challenges facing the state owing to the COVID-19 pandemic and suggest the way forward to improve its fiscal position. The committee, which will also consist of Finance Secretary S Krishnan as coordinator, will submit its report to the government within three months, according to a Government Order. The committee, with 21 members, would assess the overall immediate and medium term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on different sectors of the state's economy including the impact of lockdown, additional costs and implications due to social distancing and their precautionary measures. Also, it would assess the opportunities and threats in the short and medium term, suggest measures required to help the important sectors of the economy to overcome the impact of the virus pandemic. Apart from identifying specific reform measures to ..

Debadityo Sinha discusses how a coal power plant managed to receive environmental clearance by giving false information, which the National Green Tribunal finally overturned.

The desire for quality education for all children is noble and surely one shared by all. But Tamilnadu's Samacheer Kalvi makes that more difficult, writes Parth Shah.

It is important to remove the distortions from the political process, rather than attempt to remove politics itself from decisions in the water sector. The World Bank's model has failed, and it is time to heed other voices, writes Shripad Dharmadhikary.

What turns police personnel into instruments of violence against the underprivileged classes to which they often themselves belong? Arvind Verma has some answers.

We need to think about how RTI could be used to ensure more "systemic" solutions, where the performance of our government institutions are discussed in a regular, predictable manner says Ramesh Ramanathan.

In our system of criminal justice, the state takes up the responsibility to prosecute offenders on behalf of victims. Although public prosecutors are theoretically independent, in practice they face a number of improper influences. Bikram Jeet Batra surveys the prosecution system in India, and finds it in need of much change.

The Police Act Drafting Committee's term came to an end on 31 January. Any significant attempt to reform the Indian police must begin with the men at the bottom, the constabulary, not at the top. However, such changes would call for a struggle against the nature of Indian society itself, says former IPS officer K S Subramanian.

The loss of faith in government can be extremely detrimental to the very foundation of our democracy. Improved performance by government is a national imperative, writes C V Madhukar.

Pradeep Baisakh analyses a recently released report by human rights activists and civil society organizations to see how the present government has performed in the three years it has been in power.

Civil society candidates should be eligible for appointment to key RTI posts in the States and the Centre. We must apply for such jobs, and help improve the system, writes Krishnaraj Rao.

'A majority in Parliament is not necessary to run the government,' says Constitutional expert Subhash Kashyap, explaining the legal options before the President once the election results are declared.

In July the Chief of the Central Election Commission wrote to the Prime Minister outlining several proposals for further reforms in the electoral arena. Rasika Dhavse reports.

To be hip at Silicon Valley startups these days, one must leave the flip flops and hoodies at home and dress up on Fridays. WSJ's Andy Jordan reports from San Francisco on the "anti-Casual Friday" that's come to be known as "Formal Friday."

"The Bay Lights" light installation, inspired by the 75th anniversary of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, is officially unveiled March 5. Here's a preview of what it will look like, and a conversation the artist, Leo Villareal.

The High Level Committee constituted to review key environmental laws has apparently focussed on a wide range of issues and mechanisms; however, as long as the focus in on speed, and not environmental outcomes, the reform process may be futile, writes Manju Menon and Kanchi Kohli.

Shoma A Chatterji writes on Samanway 7, a unique theatre festival showcasing performances conceived of and crafted exclusively by women, which evolved into a well-blended expression of feminist questions that have sustained through the ages.

The proposed second round of defence reforms will make the armed forces more utilisable. Nonetheless, this should not blind us to the questionable impulse behind the reforms, writes Firdaus Ahmed.

A critique of the process and research used by the Justice Malimath Committee to recommend reforms to the Criminal Justice System. This is the first of a two part series.
Click here to read Part II

In the second and concluding part of the series on the Malimath Committee's report, Bikram Jeet Batra looks at the detailed recommendations in terms of implications for Human Rights.
Earlier: Part I

A recent letter written by the CAG Shashikant Sharma to the finance minister, seeking access to required information through RTI, exposes once more the lacunae in the powers of the Supreme Audit Institution. Himanshu Upadhyaya analyses the debate around the issue.

It is commonplace to cite the number of cases pending in Indian courts as evidence of a judicial crisis and suggest reforms based on the same. Aparna Chandra highlights why the numbers themselves need to be questioned and understood better for effective reform.

Maloy Krishna Dhar is the author of Open Secrets, a book about the Intelligence Bureau and his 30-year career in it. He spoke with Susheela Menon on terrorism, changes needed in the IB, and the power of the people in bringing about changes.

Shruti Gupta on a project in Madhya Pradesh and Jharkand that uses technology to enhance income generation opportunities through productive use of natural resources.

Telangana’s free registration of plain paper land sale initiative to digitally clean up its land records not only benefits its dispossessed farmers but makes land governance transparent, reports Manipadma Jena.

An innovative eco-friendly handicraft, developed and promoted by NEDFi, using the abundant water hyacinth has improved the economic conditions of rural artisans and crafts-women in the Northeast and given their lives new meaning Ratna Bharali Talukdar reports.

Venu Govindu reviews Siddharth Dube's Words Like Freedom : Memoirs of an Impoverished Indian Family 1947-1997

Shouldn't “fixing the delivery system” itself be one of the central planks of second-generation reforms, asks Ramesh Ramanathan.

Through his new book, Arvind Verma makes a positive contribution to police scholarship. Some of Verma's analysis is in sharp contrast to prevalent wisdom which ignores the negative role of police leadership in the current system. K S Subramanian reviews The Indian Police: A Critical Evaluation.

A trickle-down approach that sees justice through the lens of economic growth is the basis for many of its arguments, omissions and conclusions. As a result, it is of use mainly to practitioners of the law, who encounter some of the issues raised in detailed ways. Bikram Jeet Batra reviews Judicial Reforms in India: Issues and Aspects.

A recent publication from the World Resources Institute shows that the informed consent of those affected by large projects can be an asset to those projects, rather than an obstacle. Shripad Dharmadhikary reviews Development Without Conflict: The Business Case for Community Consent.

Allegedly in the midst of a major reform effort, the Uttar Pradesh healthcare system shows itself to be woefully unprepared for an outbreak of dengue. Abhijit Das reports.

N G Hegde on a Karnataka water project that is more than an innovation making water and irrigation a reality in a drought-prone area.

There is no data at the constituency level about how the development indicators have changed over the tenure of the local elected MLA or MP. Veena Ramanna reports.

Shelter Associates uses Geographic Information Systems to study slums, and Maharashtra's municipal councils find new opportunities for civic improvement.

Rasika Dhavse reports about success in self-determination and natural resource conservation at a Maharashtra village.